DSO’s Next Season: Five Concerts From New Director Fabio Luisi – Plus A Whole Lot Of Premieres And Female Composers And Conductors

And that doesn’t count the previously announced launch of the Women in Classical Music Symposium, a new Brahms recording cycle and the 30th anniversary of the Meyerson Symphony Center.

Photo: Mark Kitaoka

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Photo: Mark Kitaoka

A slew of people and music will be making their Dallas debuts and even world premieres in the Dallas Symphony’s 2019-’20 season. To give you just an idea: Gemma New, the newly appointed principal guest conductor, will make her debut in the Meyerson in November – with the Dallas premiere of ‘Rainphase’ by New Zealand female composer Salina Fisher and the world premiere of Steven Mackey’s Timpani Concerto.

And so it goes throughout the schedule – with a strong, new emphasis on female artists. The DSO’s multi-year project to highlight and enhance the role of women in classical music starts with the launch of the Women in Classical Music Symposium in November and continues with four female composers represented in the concerts and six female guest conductors throughout the season. Two are making their DSO debuts: Dalia Stasevska and Xian Zhang.

The DSO’s Fabio Luisi in action in 2016.

For DSO followers, the new season also provides a more extensive exposure, at last, to our new music director designate Fabio Luisi (that’s his official title for now) with five appearances throughout the season. Luisi is scheduled to conduct the DSO this April 18-19, but for next season, he’ll open it this September with Richard Strauss’ ‘Alpine Symphony’ and Beethoven’s ‘Emperor’ Piano Concerto – with Cliburn prizewinner Beatrice Rana on the piano – plus the Dallas premiere of Augusta Read Thomas’ ‘Aureole.’

Then he’ll be back in January to conduct the Dallas premiere of ‘Fountain of Youth,’ the new orchestral work by DSO composer-in-residence Julia Wolfe. The work was co-commissioned with the New World Symphony and Carnegie Hall. And for next year’s Soluna Festival, Luisi will lead the Dallas Symphony in the first Dallas performance of ‘The Book of Seven Seals’ by Franz Schmidt, an Austrian composer Luisi has championed. The performance will include the Dallas Symphony Chorus and the Lay Family Concert Organ.

And in addition to all that, Luisi will be starting a new recording cycle with the DSO, beginning with Johannes Brahm’s Symphony No. 2.

You see what we mean by debuts, premieres and the increased presence of female artists.

The Dallas premiere of a new work by DSO composer-in-residence Julia Wolfe is in the new season. Photo: Peter Serling

“This is such an exciting time at the Dallas Symphony,” said Kim Noltemy, President & CEO of the Dallas Symphony Association. “We are entering a new era of artistic leadership with Fabio Luisi as Music Director Designate. We are pleased to have Gemma New as our Principal Guest Conductor and Julia Wolfe as Composer-in-Residence. The Texas Instruments Classical Series includes beloved works and thought-provoking new pieces that everyone will enjoy. Our pops and special programming continues to appeal to diverse audiences around the city, and we look forward to celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center.”

FIVE PROGRAMS LED BY MUSIC DIRECTOR DESIGNATE FABIO LUISI

Music Director Designate Fabio Luisi will lead the DSO in five programs during the 2019/20 season. He will open the season with Richard Strauss’s monumental Alpine Symphony and will welcome Cliburn prizewinner Beatrice Rana in a performance of Beethoven’s “Emperor” Concerto.

Luisi will return to the DSO in January 2020 to conduct the Dallas premiere of Fountain of Youth, the new orchestral work by Julia Wolfe. Wolfe was named DSO Composer-in-Residence in October 2018, and the work is a co-commission by the DSO, New World Symphony and Carnegie Hall. The program will also include Copland’s Quiet City, Barber’s rarely performed Andromache’s Farewell (Lise Lindstrom, soprano) and Rimsky-Korsakov’s exquisitely colorful Scheherazade.

Each season, Luisi will lead the DSO in a full opera-in-concert. During the 2019/20 season, Dallas audiences will hear Richard Strauss’s Salome in full at the Meyerson. Internationally celebrated Lithuanian soprano Ausrine Stundyte will portray Salome with Mark Delavan as Jochanaan in concerts on January 31 and February 2, 2020.

Under Luisi’s baton in concerts on April 3, 4 and 5, 2020, Franz Schmidt’s The Book with Seven Seals (Das Buch mit sieben Siegeln) will receive its first Dallas Symphony performance as part of the Nancy A. Nasher and David J. Haemisegger Family SOLUNA International Music & Arts Festival. Luisi is a champion of the Austrian composer’s oratorio and recorded it in 2006 with the MDR Sinfonieorchester Leipzig. The Dallas performance will include the mighty voices of the Dallas Symphony Chorus and interludes played on the Lay Family Concert Organ by distinguished German organist Michael Schönheit.

“For me, Franz Schmidt is one of the most important symphony composers of the twentieth century, and Das Buch mit sieben Siegeln is one of my favorite pieces,” said Luisi in a recent interview.

The following week, the DSO will perform Brahms’s Second Symphony with Luisi at the helm. This performance of Brahms will be recorded for a future release on the DSO’s record label, DSO Live. Luisi and the DSO will record all of Brahms’s symphonies throughout his Music Directorship to create a full recorded Brahms cycle.

“I am so very happy to lead the Dallas Symphony musicians five weeks during this season,” said Luisi. “We will perform such a range of works, and I hope audiences will enjoy hearing us together as we build a partnership moving forward.”

DEBUT OF PRINCIPAL GUEST CONDUCTOR GEMMA NEW

Newly appointed Principal Guest Conductor Gemma New will make her DSO debut in concerts on November 8 to 10, 2019, and she will return to perform in concerts on March 6 to 8, 2020. New’s November appearance with the DSO will include the Dallas premiere of Rainphase by New Zealand female composer Salina Fisher, as well as the world premiere of Steven Mackey’s Timpani Concerto and two works by Debussy, his Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun and La Mer. During this period, New will also participate in the Women in Classical Music Symposium.

The annual New Year’s Eve Concert will also be conducted by New. The program will be a light classical evening filled with celebration and musical merriment. After the concert, guests are invited to stay for the exclusive Meyerson ‘Til Midnight After-Party.

New will lead the DSO in Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances and Barber’s Piano Concerto with soloist Garrick Ohlsson in concerts on March 6 to 8, 2020. She will also conduct John Adams’s The Chairman Dances.

“The Dallas Symphony is an exceptional orchestra, with world class musicians who share exquisite artistry, and staff who lead with inspiring vision,” said New. “I am very much looking forward to performing many engaging and insightful programs with the wonderful DSO musicians, on the beautiful Meyerson Symphony Center stage, for our enthusiastic Dallas audiences.”

LAUNCH OF WOMEN IN CLASSICAL MUSIC INITIATIVE INCLUDING NOVEMBER SYMPOSIUM

In June 2018, the DSO announced a multi-year project to highlight the role of women in classical music and to create more opportunities for female representation in the field. To that end, the 2019/20 Dallas Symphony Orchestra season features the launch of the first Women in Classical Music Symposium as well as programming and guests that support this mission.

The first annual Women in Classical Music Symposium will be held on November 6 to 9, 2019, in the Dallas Arts District. This intensive and comprehensive symposium will feature talks and panel discussions on topics relevant to women in the classical music industry and their unique barriers and triumphs. The event will also include networking opportunities and performances and will appeal to individuals in all roles of classical music – orchestra members, soloists, composers, conductors and administrators – with pathways for conversation and discussion. Full programming and the keynote speaker will be announced this spring.

The DSO has invited five female guest conductors to lead the orchestra in performances this season. Those making their DSO debut are Dalia Stasevska and Xian Zhang. Returning conductors are Karina Canellakis, Sarah Hicks and Ruth Reinhardt. In addition, four works by female composers will be part of the Texas Instruments Classical Series: Augusta Read Thomas’s Aureole, Salina Fisher’s Rainphase, Julia Wolfe’s Fountain of Youth and Kaija Saariaho’s Laterna Magica.

The 2019 DSO Gala Concert on September 28, 2019, will feature violin superstar Joshua Bell. Bell will kick off the festivities with a performance of Brahms’s Violin Concerto. Guest Conductor Christian Reif will make his DSO debut that evening.

Barbara and Don Daseke will chair the event on Saturday, September 28, 2019, with Kathryn and Craig Hall as Gala Honorary Chairs. The 2019 DSO Gala Concert Sponsor is Capital One. The DSO Gala is one of the Dallas Symphony’s largest annual fundraisers, benefitting the DSO’s music and education programs which touch the lives of more than 211,000 North Texas residents annually, including more than 30,000 children. This year, the DSO launched a Southern Dallas Residency as part of its comprehensive outreach programs. The residency provides instruments and instruction to children in area schools and in after-school programs; features DSO musicians performing concerts on weekends and evenings in the community; and fosters collaborations with artists in the community.

The black-tie event will feature a cocktail reception, elegant seated dinner, Gala Concert and the After-Party Experience featuring savories, desserts and dancing with a DJ. Full-evening Gala tickets start at $1,250 each and include the pre-concert reception, dinner, premium concert hall seating and the After-Party. For information about Full-Gala tickets, table purchases and Gala sponsorships, call Tab Boyles at 214.871.4045 or email [email protected]

Concert and After-Party tickets, which do not include the pre-concert reception or dinner, will be available as a DSO subscription add-on before single tickets go on sale on April 17, 2019.

LAUNCH OF FAB FRIDAYS – THREE RELAXED EVENINGS AT THE MEYERSON

The 2019/20 season of the DSO will bring the innovative programming of ReMix to the Meyerson. Concerts on November 8, 2019, February 14, 2020, and April 17, 2020, will be performed without intermission, and tickets will include a free drink voucher and a post-concert meet-and-greet. (The concert program will remain the same throughout the performance weekend.)

MEYERSON 30TH ANNIVERSARY AND CONCERTS

The festivities surrounding the opening of the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center began on September 6, 1989. Now in its 30th year, the home of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra continues to receive wide praise for its warm, inviting sound and the timeless building design. In 2016, Business Insider named the Meyerson one of the “10 Best-Sounding Concert Halls in the World.” The Dallas Chapter of the American Institute of Architects granted the hall a 25 Year Award for enduring design and excellence in Dallas in 2018.

This season the Dallas Symphony will commemorate the anniversary with concerts that celebrate the unique role that the Meyerson plays in the Dallas cultural community. The DSO will perform on Wednesday, September 4, 2019, at 7:30 PM. Tickets are $10. The Dallas Symphony Chorus will reprise their Celebration of Singing event on Sunday, September 22, 2019, at 2:30 PM. The chorus event is free and open to the public.

“I was struck by this magnificent hall when I first arrived,” said Noltemy. “It is an honor to celebrate its anniversary and present music for everyone.”

MOVIES IN CONCERT

Movies in Concert have been among the most popular programs in recent seasons at the DSO, bringing new people to the Meyerson to experience a symphony orchestra performance. The combination of live music and hit film makes for an unforgettable evening for all ages. This season, the DSO will present four epic films that are known for their memorable music and have a treasured place in fans’ hearts.

STAR WARS EPISODE V: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK
August 30, 31 and September 1, 2019

TIM BURTON’S THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS
October 31, November 1, 2 and 3, 2019

HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER’S STONE™
November 27, 29, 30 and December 1, 2019

COCOJune 19, 20 and 21, 2020

POPS AND POP CULTURE

Principal Pops Conductor Jeff Tyzik will return to the DSO in 2019/20 for his seventh season, during which the Pops Series will feature a wide range of exciting music.

The first Pops concert of the season will be The Music of Motown, a full-evening symphonic tribute to the music from Motor City (September 6 to 8, 2019). This program will feature smash hits made famous by artists like The Four Tops, Marvin Gaye, Michael Jackson, Martha Reeves, Diana Ross, The Temptations and Stevie Wonder.

The Pops season will continue with Chicago – The Musical, live and complete in concert. Conductor Rob Fisher will lead the DSO and soloists through the entire Kander and Ebb musical in this semi-staged production at the Meyerson. Audiences will enjoy hit songs such as “All That Jazz,” “Cell Block Tango” and “Razzle Dazzle” from October 4 to 6, 2019.

Three iconic artists will return to the DSO for performances at the Meyerson. Bernadette Peters, straight from Broadway in her appearance in Hello, Dolly!, will perform hits from the Great White Way on January 24 to 26, 2020. Pop duo the Indigo Girls will make a return visit to the Meyerson on February 21 to 23, 2020; their last appearance with the DSO was in 2012. GRAMMY® Award-winning trumpeter Chris Botti will join the DSO on March 13-15, 2020. Botti and his band will appear with the orchestra to perform songs from his hit albums.

The music of The Beatles will be celebrated in A Beatles Tribute on May 1 to 3, 2020. This stunning orchestral evening will feature Fab Four hits such as “Ticket to Ride,” “Penny Lane,” “All You Need Is Love,” “Get Back,” “Here Comes the Sun” and “Hey Jude.”

The final pops event of the 2019/20 season will be a compendium of Great American Movie Music. Tyzik will lead the DSO in iconic music from the history of film, from Elmer Bernstein to John Williams and many more (June 12 to 14, 2020).

Subscription packages for the 2019/20 season are now on sale and range from $119 to $1,899. Single tickets will go on sale this summer. More information about the programming and package offerings is available at www.mydso.com or through Guest Services at 214.TIX.4DSO.

Jerome Weeks is the Senior Arts Reporter/Producer for KERA. Previously at The Dallas Morning News, he was the book columnist for 10 years and the drama critic for 10 years before that. His writing has appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle, Salon, Los Angeles Times, Newsday, American Theatre and Men’s Vogue magazines. View more about Jerome Weeks.